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OB final 9-15

A collection of individuals who interact with each other such that one person’s actions have an impact on the others.

informal work groups

Two or more individuals who are associated with one another in ways not prescribed by the formal organization.

formal work group

Is made up of managers, subordinates, or both with close associations among group members that influence the behavior of individuals in the group.

performance model

forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning. Proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965 and involved a four-stage map of group evolution.

adjourning phase

The fifth and final stage later added to the Tuckman model.

forming

Stage when the group comes together for the first time.

storming

Stage when participants focus less on keeping their guard up as they shed social facades, becoming more authentic and more argumentative.

norming

Stage when participants find it easy to establish their own ground rules (or norms) and define their operating procedures and goals.

performing

Stage when participants are not only getting the work done, but they also pay greater attention to how they are doing it.

punctuated equilibrium

The theory that change within groups occurs in rapid, radical spurts rather than gradually over time.

cohesion

The degree of camaraderie within the group.

groupthink

A tendency to avoid a critical evaluation of ideas the group favors.

social loafing

The tendency of individuals to put in less effort when working in a group context.

collective efficacy

A group’s perception of its ability to successfully perform well.

process loss

Any aspect of group interaction that inhibits group functioning.

team

A cohesive coalition of people working together to achieve mutual goals.

production tasks

Tasks that include actually making something such as a building, product, or a marketing plan.

idea-generation tasks

Creative tasks such as brainstorming a new direction or creating a new process.

problem-solving tasks

Refers to coming up with plans for actions and making decisions.

task interdependence

The degree that team members are dependent upon one another to get information, support, or materials from other team members to be effective.

pooled interdependence

When team members may work independently and simply combine their efforts to create the team’s output.

sequential interdependence

In a team, when one person’s output becomes another person’s input.

reciprocal interdependence

Team members working on each task simultaneously.

outcome interdependence

When the rewards that an individual receives depend on the performance of others.

task force

A type of temporary team which is asked to address a specific issue or problem until it is resolved.

product development teams

Other teams that may be temporary or ongoing.

cross-functional teams

Teams that involve individuals from different parts of the organization staff.

virtual teams

Teams where members are not located in the same physical place.

top management teams

Teams appointed by the chief executive officer (CEO) and, ideally, reflect the skills and areas that the CEO considers vital for the company.

traditional manager-led teams

Teams where the manager serves as the team leader.

self-managed teams

Teams that manage themselves and do not report directly to a supervisor. Instead, team members select their own leader, and they may even take turns in the leadership role.

empowered teams

Teams that have the responsibility as well as the authority to achieve their goals.

self-directed teams

A special form of self-managed teams where members determine who will lead them with no external oversight.

norms

Shared expectations about how things operate within a group or team.

team contract

Agreements on established ground rules, goals, and roles.

conflict

A process that involves people disagreeing.

intrapersonal conflict

Conflict that arises within a person.

interpersonal conflict

A type of conflict between two people.

intergroup conflict

Conflict that takes place among different groups, such as different departments or divisions in a company, or between union and management, or between companies, such as companies who supply the same customer.

conflict management

Resolving disagreements effectively.

avoiding

An uncooperative and unassertive conflict-handling style.

accommodating

A cooperative and unassertive conflict-handling style.

compromising

A middle-ground conflict-handling style, in which a person has some desire to express their own concerns and get their way but still respects the other person’s goals as well.

competing

A conflict-handling style that is highly assertive but low on cooperation.

collaborating

A conflict-handling style that is high on both assertiveness and cooperation.

negotiation

A process whereby two or more parties work toward an agreement.

investigation

The first step in negotiation in which information is gathered.

BATNA

Stands for the “best alternative to a negotiated agreement.” Determining your BATNA is one important part of the investigation and planning phase in negotiation.

presentation

The third phase of negotiation.

bargaining

The fourth phase of negotiation.

concessions

Giving up one thing to get something else in return.

closure

The last part of negotiation in which you and the other party have either come to an agreement on the terms, or one party has decided that the final offer is unacceptable and therefore must be walked away from.

distributive view

The traditional fixed-pie approach in which negotiators see the situation as a pie that they have to divide between them.

integrative approach

An approach to negotiation in which both parties look for ways to integrate their goals under a larger umbrella.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)

Includes mediation, arbitration, and other ways of resolving conflicts with the help of a specially trained, neutral third party without the need for a formal trial or hearing.

mediation

A process in which an outside third party (the mediator) enters the situation with the goal of assisting the parties to reach an agreement.

arbitration

A process that involves bringing in a third party, the arbitrator, who has the authority to act as a judge and make a binding decision to which both parties must adhere.

decision making

Making choices among alternative courses of action, including inaction.

programmed decisions

Decisions that occur frequently enough that we develop an automated response to them.

A series of steps that decision makers should consider if their goal is to maximize their outcome and make the best choice.

decision criteria

A set of parameters against which all of the potential options in decision making will be evaluated.

alternatives

Other possible solutions to a problem in a decision-making process.

analysis paralysis

A decision-making process in which more and more time is spent on gathering information and thinking about it, but no decisions actually get made.

bounded rationality model

According to this model, individuals knowingly limit their options to a manageable set and choose the first acceptable alternative without conducting an exhaustive search for alternatives.

satisfice

To accept the first alternative that meets minimum criteria.

intuitive decision-making model

Arriving at decisions without conscious reasoning. The model argues that in a given situation, experts making decisions scan the environment for cues to recognize patterns.

creativity

The generation of new ideas that are original, fluent, and flexible.

fluency

The number of ideas a person is able to generate.

flexibility

How different the ideas are from each other. If individuals are able to generate several unique solutions to a problem, they are high on flexibility.

originality

How unique a person’s ideas are.

brainstorming

A process of generating ideas that follows a set of guidelines, including not criticizing ideas during the process, the idea that no suggestion is too crazy, and building on other ideas (piggybacking).

idea quotas

A set number of ideas a group must reach before they are done with brainstorming.

wildstorming

A variation of brainstorming in which the group focuses on ideas that are impossible and then imagines what would need to happen to make them possible.

overconfidence bias

What occurs when individuals overestimate their ability to predict future events.

hindsight bias

The opposite of overconfidence bias, as it occurs when looking backward in time and mistakes seem obvious after they have already occurred.

anchoring

The tendency for individuals to rely too heavily on a single piece of information.

framing bias

The tendency of decision makers to be influenced by the way problems are presented.

escalation of commitment

When individuals continue on a failing course of action after information reveals it may be a poor path to follow.

groupthink

A tendency to avoid a critical evaluation of ideas the group favors.

Nominal Group Technique (NGT)

A technique designed to help with group decision making by ensuring that all members participate fully.

Delphi Technique

A group process that utilizes written responses to a series of questionnaires instead of physically bringing individuals together to make a decision.

majority rule

A decision-making rule in which each member of the group is given a single vote, and the option receiving the greatest number of votes is selected.

consensus

A decision-making rule that groups may use when the goal is to gain support for an idea or plan of action. This decision-making rule is inclusive, participatory, cooperative, and democratic.

premortem

A way to imagine what might go wrong and avoid it before spending a cent or having to change course along the way.

Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS)

Interactive computer-based systems that are able to combine communication and decision technologies to help groups make better decisions.

Diagrams where answers to yes or no questions lead decision makers to address additional questions until they reach the end of the tree.

leadership

The act of influencing others toward a goal.

formal leaders

Those who hold a position of authority and may utilize the power that comes from their position, as well as their personal power to influence others.

informal leaders

Those without a formal position of authority within the organization but demonstrate leadership by influencing those around them through personal forms of power.

task-oriented leader behaviors

Structuring the roles of subordinates, providing them with instructions, and behaving in ways that will increase the performance of the group (also called initiating structure).

people-oriented leader behaviors

Showing concern for employee feelings and treating employees with respect (also called consideration).

authoritarian decision making

What occurs when leaders make the decision alone without necessarily involving employees in the decision-making process.

democratic decision making

What occurs when leaders and employees participate in the making of the decision.

laissez-faire decision making

What occurs when leaders leave employees alone to make the decision. The leader provides minimum guidance and involvement in the decision.

Theory X

A theory of human nature which assumes that employees are lazy, do not enjoy working, and will avoid expending energy on work whenever possible.

Theory Y

A theory of human nature which assumes that employees are not lazy, can enjoy work, and will put effort into furthering organizational goals.

directive leaders

Leaders who provide specific directions to their employees. They lead employees by clarifying role expectations, setting schedules, and making sure that employees know what to do on a given work day.

supportive leaders

Leaders who provide emotional support to employees. They treat employees well, care about them on a personal level, and they are encouraging.

participative leaders

Those who make sure that employees are involved in the making of important decisions.

achievement-oriented leaders

Those who set goals for employees and encourage them to reach their goals.

transformational leaders

Those who lead employees by aligning employee goals with the leader’s goals. These leaders use their charisma, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration to influence their followers.

transactional leaders

Those who ensure that employees demonstrate the right behaviors and provide resources in exchange. These leaders provide contingent rewards and manage by exception.